Gas turbine engine systems for modem aircraft often include a thrust reverser incorporated into a nacelle. The thrust reverser may redirect the flow of air through the nacelle in order to apply a reverse thrust to the aircraft. Various thrust reversers include a translating sleeve. The translating sleeve may translate aft to deploy blocker doors into the bypass air duct of a nacelle. The blocker doors may redirect air in the bypass air duct outward though a series of cascades which then turn the air forward, producing reverse thrust. The blocker doors typically may be hinged to the translating sleeve and coupled to the inner fixed structure via a drag link. As the translating sleeve translates aft, the drag link pulls the blocker doors inward, pivoting them into the bypass air duct. The linkage between the blocker doors and the inner fixed structure is facilitated when the translating sleeve translates parallel to the engine centerline. Otherwise, arrangements would be necessary for the drag links to move in more than two dimensions with more difficult to design hinge points, etc.
As engines become larger, more powerful, and increase in bypass ratio, surrounding structures limit the available packaging area for the nacelle. For example, aircraft wings, wing slats, pylons, and nozzles may interfere with locations directly aft of a translating sleeve, which may limit the space for the translating sleeve to translate along the engine centerline.